Blog of a course that allows students to learn how to use books, newspapers, magazines, journals, archives, databases, and the Internet to find and evaluate information on legendary creatures such as Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, and other cryptids. It also encourages the developement of critical thinking skills to deal with extraordinary claims and ideas for thinking about them.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Start With the Source (Eye Witnesses)

For everybody researching Sasquatch, I suggest you take time and explore the information provided by the website www.bfro.net. This site does a very good job at presenting the evidence we have on hand, explaining rumors and common misconceptions that the uninformed usually buy into. Read some of the PGF articles under VIDEO CLIPS, PHOTOS, SOUNDS. Many people have seen the Patterson-Gimlin film, but almost everybody immediately dismisses it as a hoax. On the other hand, the people who have taken time to analyze and research the footage have found that there is more evidence to support that the video is in fact authentic than there is to suggest it is fake.

BFRO also has a running database of individual eyewitness reports, each of which is investigated before posted on the website. 511 reports of encounters are located in Washington alone. I have read a countless amount of these reports, and by doing this i have been able to examine this phenomenon from its roots up, as the existence for these creatures is most heavily supported by the people who claim to have seen them. Physical evidence, although present, is scarce. Relying on reported encounters alone as a way of studying the creature is problematic, because of the obvious question of credibility. But since thousands of eye witnesses have been coming forth increasingly over the years, it would be foolish to ignore their stories. It is important to note that most of these reports are given by grown adults, with families and jobs and better things to be doing than making up fake Sasquatch encounters. It is also important to note that through examination of these numerous encounters, you will begin to notice undeniable patterns in the smallest of details, from the anatomic descriptions of the creature to the behavior observed during the encounter.

I have found bfro.net very helpful in understanding the basics of the Sasquatch phenomenon, and i definitely recommend a visit for all you Squatchers. Although the primary focus of the sight is the North American Sasquatch, on the home page they have some cool links for the "Chinese Bigfoot" (which would be considered the Yeti, i believe).

I close with, in my opinion, the most outstanding piece of natural history footage ever shot.